James Woods tweets Florida veteran contemplating suicide

MAITLAND, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Hollywood actor James Woods is best known for his roles in movies like Casino and Contact, but this week on his Twitter account, he took on the role as comforter to a man in crisis who tweeted a cry for help.

Woods called Maitland Police Department in Maitland, Florida, after seeing a disturbing tweet in his feed about a veteran sitting in a Walmart parking, lot threatening suicide.  Woods tweeted back to him saying, "Tell me where you are.” He goes on to post, "We can talk. I don't care what anybody thinks. Do you? Let’s have a conversation. Just you and I."

“Social media has made it such an incredible platform for us to be able to help each other in these times of crisis,” said Gretchen Smith of the Tennessee-based non-profit Code of Vets.  We spoke to Smith via Skype whose organization helps veterans in crisis. She also got wind of the tweet, after it began going viral on twitter.

“I retweeted it and asked, I asked him to contact me,” Smith said. 

Woods did too, telling followers "He's in Maitland. Calling PD there now."   Maitland Police responded and said they were able to speak to the veteran over the phone but are still trying to find him to speak to him in person. Smith said, while it's ideal for experts to handle these situations, Woods and the others who reached out did the right thing.

“There is nothing wrong with reaching out to that American citizen, that beautiful human being that's suffering in that moment, because sometimes that's what they need,” Smith said.